LEARN MORE ABOUT
Andrew Chalnick’s Campaign Priorities
LEARN MORE ABOUT
Andrew Chalnick’s Campaign Priorities
Public Safety
Let’s keep South Burlington the Safest City in the US
Public safety is the foundation of a strong community. I am committed to ensuring that our neighborhoods remain safe, welcoming and resilient. While South Burlington has been experiencing persistent and growing levels of property crime, there is virtually no violent crime in South Burlington. Recognizing this, South Burlington was named in 2024 the safest city in America and I was invited to the Anna and Raven show to talk about this and all things South Burlington. Listen to that podcast below:
What are we doing to enhance Public Safety in South Burlington?
During my tenure, the City:
- doubled funding for our Community Outreach Team (the Howard Center workers embedded in our police department).
- added a second full-time ambulance.
- brought online four new state-of-the-art dispatching stations for fire, emergency medical services and police.
- supported our Community Justice Center.
- brought on-line computer aided dispatch for our fire and emergency medical services that allows the City to better deploy our team to emergency calls by using GPS to send the closest available unit based on call needs and staff skills.
- to promote the work-life balance of our force and help our department attract the very best talent, modified the shift schedule of our fire, EMT and paramedic professionals from the prior 24 hours on and 48 hours pattern to add a “Kelly Day” (a day off) every 7th shift.
To address crime at its roots, South Burlington has been a strong supporter of our South Burlington Food Shelf. We also partner with Common Roots, which in 2024 alone donated over $120,000 worth of fresh produce to the food shelf. The City provides financial assistance to both organizations, and provides additional support to Common Roots by providing access to farmland at nominal rates, office and kitchen space, and most recently, a new hoop house to expand their growing capacity.
With all that, it does seem like things have changed since South Burlington was voted the safest City in America.
The surge in the use of opiods and illicit drugs like fentanyl and heroin has led to increasing numbers of people on our streets seemingly under the influence, along with discarded needles in our parks, on school grounds and in other public spaces. Our public safety professionals are increasingly called upon to respond to these challenges, as well as the related and often overlapping crisis of mental health. This growing demand diverts attention and resources from other important community concerns.
At the same time, some residents are expressing heightened feelings of unease, particularly in relation to the visible increase in homelessness.
I don’t pretend to have easy solutions. Complex issues like drug addiction and homelessness cannot be meaningfully addressed without significant support from state and federal partners, or without confronting the deeper societal inequities that contribute to them.
However, while broader change takes time, there are local steps we should consider to help improve public safety. One thing to consider is strengthening South Burlington’s policy around encampments, and/or developing drug- and loitering-free buffer zones around schools and municipal buildings. We will need the advice and insights of our public safety professionals to ensure that any such increased enforcement will be effective, and can be implemented with compassion.